The first time I heard the word ‘workshop’ was at a farewell party in SGU when Mr. Kho explained it to us (parents and students). He explained that a workshop was often a business simulation game. Mr. Kho also said that we could have a European trip during which we would visit several interesting places such as historical buildings and well-known factories. After I heard some more explanations from Mr. Kho, I decided to join in. But still, I was confused about what the game would be like.

First of all, I want to share with you my daily experience in the workshop. At the beginning I met participants from other countries. I did not feel comfortable with them. I thought it was because of the different cultures, but later I concluded that the problem was with me. It was because I could not open myself to them, to be friendlier and to be more active.

I was very happy that I could join in the workshop because I received a lot of new experiences. For example, I could share my daily life with people who came from other nations. That was great fun and very interesting. In addition, from the workshop I got a lot of knowledge from each visit. For example, when we visited the European parliament, I got a lot of information from the presentation. When we visited a diamond factory, I learned how diamonds were made and where to find diamonds. We also had fun. We visited a beach in Belgium, historical buildings with a great view, and I was very happy when other participants had a conversation in their own language. Actually there were too many experiences for me to mention!

From the game, I got a lot of knowledge, especially about business. Before I played this game, I knew little about business life. Now, I know a lot about business life, such as market research, market share, and the importance of relationships also. For example, when I want to sell my product at a good price I must consider the quality, the advertising, the quantities of my product, the transportation cost and other considerations. In addition, there is market research. Besides that, before I joined the workshop, I admit that my presentation skills were bad. However, I learned a lot from watching the other participants give presentations. Honestly, words are not enough to explain my experiences; you have to have the experiences yourself.

Overall, the workshop was a great experience. We learned a lot, had fun and met people from other cultures.

Daniel Soedarso